to make capital out of
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To turn to account : thus, in politics, one party is always ready to make political capital out of the errors of the other.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to make capital out of” mean?
To turn to account : thus, in politics, one party is always ready to make political capital out of the errors of the other.
Is “to make capital out of” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.